High-explosive-throwing ordnance



' (No uodelf) C. A. THOMAS. HIGH BXPLosIvB THROWING oRDNANoB.

No. 576,917. Patented Feb. 9, 1.897.

llmlmlullllllllImm!lulmummmm@ UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES A. THOMAS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

HIGH-EXPLOSIVE-THROWING ORDNANCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 576,917, dated February 9, 1897.

Application filed March 13, 1896. Serial No. 583,059. (No model.)

To all who/1t t 'may colmar/f.:

Be it known that I, CHARLES A. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, (Fox Chase,) in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Guns, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a new and useful improvement in guns for shooting high-explosive projectiles, and has for its object to so construct such a gun as to entirely separate the projectile and the charge which is to impart the initial velocity to said projectile and to relieve said projectile of all heating influences occasioned by friction upon the bore of .the gun and the gases from the powder.

IVith these ends in view the invention consists in the details of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth, and then specifically designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which my invention appertains may u nderstand how to make and use the same, I will describe its construction and operation in detail, referring by number to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 represents my improvement mounted upon a suitable carriage, showing the several parts in position for firing; Fig. 2, a central vertical section thereof; and Fig. 3, a cross-section of a projectile-bore, showing a slight modification of the projectile-carrier, by means of which the friction between the bore of the gun and said carrier is reduced.

Similar numbersdenote like parts in the vviews of the drawings.

IfIeretofore great difficulty has been experienced in ringhigh-explosive projectiles from guns by the use of powder or similar material on account of the sudden jar imparted to the projectile, the friction of said projectile in passing through the bore of the gun, and the heat generated by the firing-charge, all of which tend to explode said projectile before leaving the gun, but I have entirelyovercome these difficulties by so constructing a gun as to separate the projectile from the ring-charge and place it in acarrier which acts as a cradle, and also by theA intervention of suitable buffers for the purpose of taking up the initial shock. These results are brought about in the following manner:

1 represents a turn-table, and 2 a base upon which said table swings. Mounted upon this table is a suitable carriage 3, to which the gun is secured. The projectile-tube 4 is made of suflicient size to receive the carrier 5, which is preferably composed of non-conducting material, such as leather, and is provided with a cushion 6 at its bottom, against which the projectile '7 rests when in place for iiring. The proj ectile-bore is separated from the rear portion of the tube by a partition 8, through which a hole is formed of sufficient size to permit the passage of the projectorrod 9. The forward end of this rod is secured to the proj ectile-carrier and its rear end is enlarged, so as to form a head 10, approximately conical in shape, for the purpose hereinafter set forth.`

11 is the tiring-tube, in the chamber of which is placed the powder or other explosive for this purpose, and after a suitable wad 12 has been placed thereon the head 10 of the projector-rod is placed firmly against said wad, thus bringing the carrier into the position shown in Fig. 2, when the projectile 7 may be placed into position in said carrier through the trap-door 13 in the side of the projectiletube. The head 10 is enlarged so that it will be arrested by the plate 21 and that gas escaping past the wad may act on the enlarged end.

The firing-tube is mounted upon the parallel levers 14, which are pivoted at 15 to said tube and at 16 to the carriage, so that said tube may be swung backward and downward to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig.- 1 for the purpose of placing the firing charge within its chamber.

A suitable hook 17 may be secured upon either side of the projectile-tube and pins upon the tiring-tube for the purpose of se' curing said ring-tube in its normal position relative to the projectile-tube, or any other suitable locking mechanism may be used for this purpose.

The projectile-tube back of the projectilebore is provided with a number of slots 18,

IOO

which connect the interior of said tube with the outside atmosphere, so that when the ring charge is exploded the gases from said explosion may escape to the outer air through these slots.

From this description the operation of my improvement is as follows: The chamber in the iiring-tube having been properly loaded and said tube locked inv its proper relative position to the projectile-tube and the carrier and projector-rod having been brought to the position shown in Fig. 2 and the projectile placed in position in the carriage, the firing charge is exploded by means of the ordinary primer 19 in the usual manner, when the expansion caused by this explosion will force the projector-rod forward, carrying with it the carriage and projectile until the head 10 comes in contact withthe spring-buffer 2l, when the momentum of the carrier will be arrested and the projectile permitted to continue its course from the momentum thus imparted thereto. The length of the projectorrod is such as to bring the carrier to the mouth of the projectiletube before the head 10 is arrested by the buffer 21. Thus no friction will be generated between the projectile and its tube, which will avoid heating. The cu shion 6, which is placed at the bottom of the carrier, will diminish the strain due to the initial velocity imparted to the projector-rod by the firing charge, and as all the gases generated by the explosion of said charge pass through the slots 18 it will be seen that no heat and but little concussion is imparted to the projectile. 4The spring-buffer 22 is for the purpose of preventing any accidental jar upon the projectile when loading` the same into the carrier.

In the modification shown in Fig. 3 the carrier 5 is provided with antifriction-rolls 23 for the purpose of reducing` the friction between said carrier and the projectile-tube.

A Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and useful is- 1. In a gun for throwing high-explosive projectiles, a proj ectile-bore and firing-chamber with an interposed partition, a projection-rod working through the partition, a projectile-carriage connected with the rod and buffers against which the rod operates, as and for the purpose described.

2. In a gun for throwing high -explosive projectiles, a projectile-bore, a carrier adapted to slide within said bore, a ring-chamber separated from said projectile-bore, and a projector-rod adapted to impart motion to said carrier by an explosion in the tiringchamber, substantially as and for the purposes set forth. n

8. A gun for throwing high-explosive projectiles, consisting of a proj ectile-bore, a iiring-chainber separated from said bore by a partition S, a carrier adapted to slide within said bore, a projector-rod 9, passing through a suitable opening in said partition, a head lO, formed upon said rod, by means of which motion is imparted to the carrier from an explosion in the tiring-chamber, supports connected to the iiring-chamber whereby it canA be moved out of line with the projectile-bore, for the purpose of charging said iiringchamber, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES A. THOMAS.

Witnesses: A

S. S. WILLIAMSON, F. MATTNER. 

